Heritage at the Library

Porirua Library is the place to go to discover Porirua's history, its people and places and your own family origins.

Click on the navigation links to the left of the screen to discover more about our heritage and what resources are available at your local library.

Porirua through the camera lens...

View of Serlby Place in the city centre and the Porirua Post Office building in the early 1970s.
(Pataka Museum collection A.1d.40)

Is Porirua becoming the new Big Apple?

In January 2013, New Zealand Post relocated from its building in Serlby Place to Semple Place in the MegaCentre due to concerns about it not being earthquake-safe. Porirua City Council purchased it and sold it to a property developer in 2016 who plans to convert it in to inner-city apartments as part of the city's revitalisation plans.

A post office has been operating in Porirua since 1861. At first it was as part of a general store but from 1912 it had its own dedicated building. This was closed in 1960 because it had become too small to meet the demands of the burgeoning place that Porirua had grown in to. After roosting in temporary accommodation, the announcement was made in 1969 that a new purpose-built, four-storey building for the post office would become the new home of Porirua's post office. It was officially opened on 5 April 1972.

The sources of information about the Porirua Post Office building came from the Kapi Mana News - you can read the following articles and any of the other back issues at Porirua Library's Local Heritage Resource Centre. Ask at the Help Desk to find them.